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CHAPTER 1

Citation, commencement and application

1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Education (Postgraduate Doctoral Degree Loans and the Education (Student Loans) (Repayment) (Amendment) (No. 2) etc.) Regulations 2018 and come into force on 11th June 2018.

(2) Part 1 of these Regulations applies in relation to England only.

(3) Parts 1 and 2 of these Regulations apply in relation to the provision of a loan to students in relation to a postgraduate doctoral degree course which begins on or after 1st August 2018 whether anything done under these Regulations is done before, on or after 1st August 2018.

(4) Regulation 60(3) does not apply in relation to an applicant who, before the date on which these Regulations come into force, makes an application under the Education (Postgraduate Master’s Degree Loans) Regulations 2016(1) for support in relation to an academic year which begins on or after 1st August 2018.

“academic authority” means, in relation to an institution, the governing body or other body having the functions of a governing body and includes a person acting with the authority of that body;

“academic year” means the period of twelve months beginning on 1st January, 1st April, 1st July or 1st September of the calendar year in which the academic year of the course in question begins according to whether that academic year begins on or after 1st January and before 1st April, on or after 1st April and before 1st July, on or after 1st July and before 1st August or on or after 1st August and on or before 31st December, respectively;

“authority-funded” means—

(a)

in relation to educational institutions in England, maintained or assisted by recurrent grants administered by the Office for Students(2);

(b)

in relation to educational institutions in Wales, maintained or assisted by recurrent grants from the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales(3);

(c)

in relation to educational institutions in Scotland, maintained or assisted by recurrent grants from the Scottish Funding Council; and

(d)

in relation to educational institutions in Northern Ireland, maintained or assisted by recurrent grants from the Department for the Economy in Northern Ireland or the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland;

“course” means a taught programme of study, a programme of research, or a combination of both, and which may include one or more periods of work experience, and which leads, on successful completion, to the award of a postgraduate doctoral degree but not –

(a)

a higher doctorate; or

(b)

a doctorate by publication;

“designated course” means a course designated by or under regulation 4;

“Directive 2004/38” means Directive 2004/38 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29th April 2004(4) on the rights of citizens of the Union and their family members to move and reside freely in the territory of the Member States;

“distance learning course” means a course on which a student undertaking the course is not required to be in attendance by the institution providing the course, where “required to be in attendance” is not satisfied by a requirement imposed by the institution to attend any institution—

(a)

for the purposes of registration or enrolment or any examination;

(b)

on a weekend or during any vacation; or

(c)

on an occasional basis during the week;

“electronic signature” is so much of anything in electronic form as—

(a)

is incorporated into or otherwise logically associated with any electronic communication or electronic data; and

(b)

purports to be so incorporated or associated for the purpose of being used in establishing the authenticity of the communication or data, the integrity of the communication or data, or both;

“eligible prisoner” means a prisoner—

(a)

who is serving a sentence of imprisonment in the United Kingdom;

(b)

has been authorised by the prison Governor or Director or other appropriate authority to study the designated course; and

(c)

whose earliest release date is within 8 years of the first day of the first academic year of the designated course;

“eligible student” has the meaning given in regulation 3;

“equivalent or higher qualification” means a qualification determined in accordance with paragraph (2) to be an equivalent or higher qualification;

“EU national” means a national of a Member State of the EU;

“fees” has the meaning given in section 41(1) of the Higher Education Act 2004(5);

“healthcare bursary” means a bursary or award of similar description under section 63 of the Health Services and Public Health Act 1968(6) or Article 44 of the Health and Personal Social Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1972(7);

“information” includes documents;

“Islands” means the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man;

“period of eligibility” has the meaning given in regulation 5 in relation to an eligible student;

“periods of work experience” means—

(a)

periods of industrial, professional or commercial experience associated with the designated course at an institution, but at a place outside that institution;

(b)

periods during which a student is employed and residing in a country whose language is one that the student is studying for that student’s designated course (provided that the period of residence in that country is a requirement of that student’s course and the study of one or more modern languages accounts for not less than one half of the total time spent studying on the course);

“person granted humanitarian protection” means a person—

(a)

who, on the grounds of humanitarian protection, has been granted leave to remain under the immigration rules as defined in section 33(1) of the Immigration Act 1971(8);

(b)

whose leave to remain is extant, or in respect of whose leave to remain an appeal is pending (within section 104 of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002(9)) ; and

(c)

who has been ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom and Islands throughout the period since the person was granted such leave to remain;

“person granted stateless leave” means a person who—

(a)

has extant leave to remain as a stateless person under the immigration rules (within the meaning given in section 33(1) of the Immigration Act 1971); and

(b)

has been ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom and Islands throughout the period since the person was granted such leave.

“postgraduate doctoral degree loan” means a loan made by the Secretary of State pursuant to these Regulations, and includes the interest accrued on the loan, and any penalties or charges incurred in connection with it, except for interest, penalties or charges payable under Part 3 or 4 of the Education (Student Loans) (Repayment) Regulations 2009(10);

“prisoner” includes a person detained in a young offender institution;

“private institution” means an institution which is not publicly funded;

“public funds” means moneys provided by Parliament or by a government authority outside the United Kingdom;

“publicly funded”, unless otherwise indicated, means maintained or assisted by recurrent grants out of public funds and related expressions are to be interpreted accordingly;

“refugee” means a person who is recognised by Her Majesty’s government as a refugee within the meaning of the United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Refugees done at Geneva on 28th July 1951(11) as extended by the Protocol thereto which entered into force on 4th October 1967(12);

“right of permanent residence” means a right arising under Directive 2004/38 to reside in the United Kingdom permanently without restriction;

“student loans legislation” means the 2016 Master’s Degree Regulations, the student support regulations, the Education (Student Loans) Act 1990(13), the Education (Student Loans) (Northern Ireland) Order 1990(14), the Education (Scotland) Act 1980(15) and regulations made under those Acts or that Order, the Education (Student Support) (Northern Ireland) Order 1998(16) and regulations made under that Order, or the 1998 Act and regulations made under that Act;

(2) The Secretary of State may determine that a qualification is an equivalent or higher qualification if—

(a)an eligible student holds a higher education qualification from any institution whether or not in the United Kingdom; and

(b)the qualification referred to in sub-paragraph (a) is a postgraduate doctoral degree from an institution in the United Kingdom or is of an academic level which, in the opinion of the Secretary of State, is equivalent to or higher than a qualification to which the designated course leads.

The Office for Students (OfS) was established as a body corporate under section 1 of the Higher Education and Research Act 2017 (c.29). SI 2018/245 makes consequential, transitional, transitory and saving provisions and Part 3 provides for the OfS to perform the statutory functions of the Higher Education Funding Council (HEFCE) for the period beginning with the 1st of April 2018 and ending with the 31st of July 2019 including, under regulations 2 and 4, HEFCE’s funding functions under section 65(1) to (4) of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 (c.13). HEFCE used to administer grant funding, but ceased to exist on the 1st of April 2018 in accordance with section 81 of the Higher Education Research Act 2017 (c.29) which was commenced by S.I. 2018/241.

(3)

Under section 65 of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 (c.13) the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales (HEFCW) may provide grants to higher education institutions in Wales. Section 65 was amended by Schedule 11 to the Higher Education and Research Act 2017 (c. 29). HEFCW’s funding functions were unaffected.

(4)

OJ No L158, 30.4.2004, p77-123.

(5)

2004 c.8; the definition of fees in section 41(1) was revoked by Schedule 11 to the Higher Education and Research Act 2017 (c.29), but saved by regulation 13 of S.I. 2018/245 for the period beginning with the 1st of April 2018 and ending with the 31st of July 2019.

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